KLLM Going down hill???

And just an update to the first post...

Six months after those cuts, and a benefit reduction from 80/20 to 70/30 with no reduction in our $42 a week insurance plan, KLLM's CEO Jim Richards has recorded a lovely message for those of us who sit behind the wheel of his company's trucks. It includes about ten minutes of Lease/Op program plugging/praise singing/bribing (a $1,000 conversion bonus for any company driver who wants to become Lease/Op and no money down).

And then, after the over the phone infomercial, Richards announces that KLLM's "current business model" is not working, given the "lower freight rates" that "the customers" are demanding. So KLLM's response, a mere six months after slamming almost every reason I went to the company...

1) Another pay cut...3 cents or down to 34, whichever is less (if you make 38 cpm, you go to 35. If you make 35 cpm, you go to 34)
2) Pay freeze for drivers...no more annual raises (which was only a penny per mile)
3) No more experience pay (5 year vet coming in makes the same as a noob coming out of school - 32 cpm)
4) Trainers are now "charged" to have a student. They lose 2 cpm whenever they have one on the truck (so that the 2cpm can be used for the student's pay, ostensibly. The student won't get the 2 cpm, the 2cpm will go to their 400 a week pay)

These are just a few of the highlights of the changes going on at KLLM. Also, no more than a week ago, the company apparently didn't want to pay for fuel for the yard and visibly apparently doesn't want to pay for garbage collection from the overflowing dumpsters in the Jackson yard.

One of my many, many questions, is that if this company is struggling so hard for money right now, how can they afford to shell out a grand a piece if someone converts over to Lease/Op?

My best bet is that the next "major message" we get from our CEO will either be bankruptcy and restructuring (into a 100% lease/op company) or the sale of the company to another established company (such as Schneider, England, etc.)

Time to boot up the search engine...

 

Glad I got out of there. Its tough making money on that lease. I also was wondering what was up with the fuel. I was at the Atlanta yard and they had no fuel. Then I went and turned my truck in at the Jackson yard and they didn't have any either. I think they are going to go 100% lease company and then sell it.

 

Mr Kennedy,

They are STILL one of the better companies out there.

EVERYBODY is making cuts, try other companies, you 'll see........

 

When you become a lease operator they win. All truck expense get paid out of the revenue, if there is any left the driver gets paid. They get to eliminate payroll, workers comp and benefits, a win win for them.

I am willing to bet there is no fuel at terminals because their credit was cut off.

I would be very concerned if you don't receive your 2010 tag soon, they have till the end of the month, at about $1600 per truck it may push them over the edge.

 

I disagree this is one of the better companys out there, i respect everyone opinon.i see you have limited experience in the industry. pay is not the only draw to trucking benefits are a big part of it my insurance went up drasticly in price the folks with one dependant were hit the worst and only paying 70 percent that sad when i first started here it was ok but with vacation pay and weeks cut layover pay changes, kllm has nothing to offer an experienced driver.and what amounts to a 5cpm cut in pay. and now they say detention after 3 hours when actually you have to be detaned until after the start of the 4th hr to get paid. yes there are a lot of companys doing better.

 

Are any company drivers out there experiencing lower miles or sitting around in the last month? Suddenly my husbands miles are about cut in half. He has always been happy with KLLM until recently. Not only are the miles getting less but he has been given alot of impossible pickup and delivery times.

 

Yes my miles are down. As far delivery times they send you loads to pickup when you are allready late. example send a message at 11 am to pickup at 9 am allready two hours late. i wonder if they aint offering the work to the lease operators and then the company trucks since we cant turn down work.

 

Thats what we were wondering.Trying to get rid of company drivers? My husband has been getting loads to pick up 10 pm after driving all day and it is expected to be delivered the next morning(about 300 to 400 miles) by 9 am. Guess they think he doesn"t need a shut down. If he tells dispatch that it can't be done, he is told to call the broker and figure it out himself. While he's getting unloaded he'll get a message to pickup 2 hrs away and 2hrs ago. Already at least 4 hours late. Its getting frustrating and only 1000 miles a week isn't worth it.

 

Thats the way i see things they want to only keep a few company trucks to run the [pardon the term], the crap they cant get the lease and owner operators to run.We shouldnt have to call a broker to me that is there place sometimes they tell me to call customer service. but yet they say everyone that does not drive there is there to support the drivers, i think everyone in that office is over worked.

 

I had heard this was comming. That the company wanted to go to all lease, except a few company drivers and a few dedicated. That's my guess about all of this. I'm not there anymore, but was thinking of going back and doing the lease. I just want to see what it's going to be like and how the lease is going to work out first, before i think about signing on the dotted line. I have been driving local, but things here are really slowing down, contracts are going away and local freight is getting slow.